Blur‘s multiplayer beta hints at a spectacular game

We spend some time with the Blur multiplayer beta, and come away itching for …

Bizarre Creation's Blur is shaping up to be a great arcade-style racing game for the PC, PS3, and 360. The game's multiplayer beta is officially launching today on Xbox Live; we got to spend some time with it this weekend, and it's a ton of fun to play. The beta lets players check out four tracks, four play modes, eight power-ups, and fourteen vehicles.

Getting access to most of this content utilizes a ranking system that will seem familiar to anyone who's played a game with competitive multiplayer play. In order to increase your rank, you have to earn fans. However, since power-ups are picked up on the race track, every one of them is available to players from the beginning. These power-ups are actually a blast to play with, as they help make the gameplay feel unique; there's a lot of strategy involved in determining what kind of power-ups you want to use with specific cars on certain tracks. It's also particularly satisfying to watch a homing missile wreck one of your nearby opponents.

Earning fan points isn't that difficult. You'll snag a boatload when you complete a race, and there are bonuses that can be earned just about any way you can imagine during your time on the track. Drifting, surviving attacks, launching attacks, activating speed boosts, surviving a lap without using a repair boost, and using a repair boost are only a few ways to earn fan bonuses. Thankfully, speedy accumulation of fans means that it only takes about an hour to gain access to the majority of the beta's content.

As you advance through the ranks, new cars, mod types, and game modes are unlocked. Initially, you're stuck in the basic race mode and can only use the beginner car models. That means you're probably going to get pummeled if some higher-level players are in a race against you, since they're likely driving more powerful vehicles. There are also a number of challenges that players can achieve by accomplishing certain tasks like surviving a specific number of attacks or completing a race within a time limit without using any power-ups.

Based on the multiplayer beta, Blur seems like it's going to be a blast. It should be noted that the race tracks feel a little generic, but the gameplay is fun and different enough to make things interesting. Overall, it feels like a cross between Project Gotham Racing mixed with Mario Kart, with just a bit of the Burnout destruction mixed in. If the rest of the game is as fun and fast-paced as the multiplayer is, then Blur can't make it to stores fast enough.

The last car/racing game I bought was Burnout Paradise and I've been waiting far too long for something new. Both of the above titles are looking pretty interesting though I admit I had dismissed Blur until I started hearing the recent beta impressions. I just may have to pick up both of these.

I played the beta for a good hour last night, and though it was absolutely awesome - addictive as hell, lots to unlock and progression to be made - the Mario Kart / BurnOut / MSR mix is just right. So long as they include offline multiplayer tounaments, I'll be a happy bunny and a day-one purchaser.

I downloaded the beta last night and got in a couple races. I thought it was pretty fun. Mario Kart 64 was one of my favorite games to play my last year in college. It's cool having a similar game on my 360.

I look forward to being able to identify the power-ups. Right now, I see all these powerups and am not sure what they all do. After a couple races, I could identify a couple of them easily. I'm sure after a couple more races, I'll remember them all.

One question I have on the game is what the single player is going to be like? Is it going to be an open world type thing like Burnout Paradise? Do you just do races, one after another?